By admin 
IIn the spring of 1980 I entered the voting booth for the first time. I was a senior in high school and the Democratic Party was experiencing a heated primary race between incumbent President Jimmy Carter and his challenger, Senator Ted Kennedy. I was 18 years old and like many people at that age, I felt like I knew everything. I saw Carter as a loser who had done something bad domestic And international affairs. So I cast my vote for Kennedy.
Although Carter won the Democratic nomination in 1980, he lost his re-election bid to Governor Ronald Reagan on November 4, 1980, ending his presidential term after one term. He and First Lady Rosalynn Carter left the White House on January 20, 1981, and returned to their home in Plains, Georgia. We didn’t know the term at the time, but Carter was essentially canceled.
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The world is a very different place today – and so is the man who was pushed out of office all those years ago. Five decades later, Carter is seen as one humanitarian and statesman; a reputation that eluded him during his 1980 campaign. With Carter’s passing, we should take a moment to reflect on an individual who showed incredible grace and courage in a post-presidential life and career. In particular, those of us concerned with building trust should consider how his status has changed so significantly – and what lessons we can learn.
In fact, I’ve discovered that there are four lessons to be learned from Carter’s reputation recovery:
First, time will reveal the truth. During Carter’s re-election campaign, the president’s inability to free the 52 Americans held hostage in the U.S. embassy in Iran became a central issue. His approval ratings fell to 31% over the period. Some have since suggested that if the hostages had been released before the election, it would have boosted Carter’s re-election prospects – but the hostages were not released until January 20, 1981, minutes after Reagan’s inauguration. We only recently learned why. By 2023, The New York Times revealed that Reagan ally and Texas political giant John B. Connally Jr. took a private trip to the Middle East during the 1980 campaign with a message to heads of state: Iran would get better treatment from Reagan than Carter, so they should hold the hostages until after the election. That’s exactly what they did, and Carter was denied a victory that might have sent him back to the White House. This revelation certainly reframes history – and recasts Carter’s role.
Read more: Freeing the hostages would not have re-elected Jimmy Carter
Second, dream new dreams. After leaving the White House, the Carters didn’t look angry or bitter in the rearview mirror. They returned to Georgia and pursued new careers and projects with gusto. They became authors and college professors and founded the Atlanta-based Carter Center – an organization that embodied their shared commitment to humanitarian causes. I am honored to see their work firsthand; My company, Pfizer, has a long-standing partnership with The Carter Center to eliminate blinding trachoma in countries where neglected tropical diseases are endemic. I have had the privilege of visiting The Carter Center as well as several treatment sites in Africa where Pfizer and The Carter Center continue to help people affected by trachoma. But my greatest honor was hosting and interviewing President Carter at Pfizer headquarters in 2013 to celebrate 15 years of partnership with the International Trachoma Initiative. His warmth, sincerity, intelligence and charisma were evident to all – and so was the satisfaction he had found in a post-presidential career that allowed him to take on new and essential challenges.
Third, work with your hands. In 1984, shortly after returning to Plains, the Carters launched the Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Work Project, an annual home-building blitz organized through Habitat for Humanity. The Carters were advocates for affordable housing, but they were also hands-on volunteers. The Work Project wasn’t about galas or red carpets; instead, their construction work kept them busy swinging hammers and pounding nails. The Carter Work Project built more than 4,400 homes in 14 countries in the 35 years the Carters were directly involved – and allowed the Carters to build a deep connection with the public.
Finally, be an optimist and recognize the opportunities that a new day brings. In Carter’s book it says The virtues of growing olderhe writes about a far-reaching interview with Barbara Walters in which all aspects of his life were discussed. The two talked about his extensive journey from peanut farmer to submariner; from the governor’s mansion to the White House and back home to Plains. At one point Walters asked him, “Mr. Mr President, you have had a number of exciting and challenging careers; What have been your best years?” Carter’s response was, “Now is the best time of all.”
Read more: A media that looked for fault portrayed Jimmy Carter as a failure. It’s time to look deeper
Let us all take comfort and courage from the example of the former president. Over the course of five decades, he has taught us that our best years are not necessarily about the height of our power, but about the depth of our resilience; that history is long and there are plenty of new possibilities. Most of all, he taught us that, with the right approach and the right attitude, now can be the best time of all.
President Carter may not have earned my vote as a high school student in 1980. But almost five decades later, he has certainly earned my gratitude, admiration and respect. But most importantly, the life he lived offers lessons to us all.
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